Winter Came
by CanaanAlshea
Summary: The Meaning Of Winter Changes For Sesshoumaru


Title: Winter Came  
>Author: Yoko-cw"<br>Summary: Winters With Sesshoumaru And Rin

Winter came in ferociously, the wind whipping his white hair around his body, and nearly knocking Rin and Jaken over as they tromped through the wide field. They walked behind him in the path made by his legs; after all the snow was nearly around his knees, it would easily bury the two who followed him loyally and without question. Rin hummed through chattering teeth, smiling and calling out "Lord Sesshoumaru please wait!" every so often when her boot fell off, or when Jaken was blown over. "Lord Sesshoumaru!" She giggled when she too was controlled by the elements, her body thrust forward and into the back of his legs. He glanced over his shoulder with warmed honey eyes, staring at the missing-toothed-grin he would never admit he loved so much. "Sorry my lord," she giggled, brushing snow from her hair, "It's very hard to walk as quickly as you do." He gave a silent nod, waiting a second for the grumbling imp and AaUun (who never seemed to care how the weather was) to catch up before adjusting Mokomoko-sama over his shoulder. He would not admit it was cold.

She struggled to find something to give to her Lord Sesshoumaru; flowers did not grow in the winter, he did not eat human food...so what could she give to show her gratitude, to trust that he was happy with her despite the ever present lack of emotion he was so well known for? Little Rin chewed her nails thoughtfully (though she promised to stop weeks ago when she was given a look of disgust by her two demon friends) before running outside; just enough to be at the mouth of the cave. AaUun watched her lazily, chewing on the frozen grass they had dragged in, making sure the little girl did not get swallowed up by the constant white. "My Lord! Please come see?" A white brow cocked upward, but he rose at her request, looking down at his little girl. She gave that sunshine smile, craning her neck to look at his eyes for the difference in height never seemed to shrink between them. "I have brought you flowers!" Sesshoumaru looked from her face to the snow she was pointing at. She had drawn large, child like flowers with a stick. "Arigatou, Rin," he said with a nod, expressionless but sincere. His hand fell atop her head and he led her back to the warmer parts of the cave where he was cooking a fish Jakken had pulled from the icy river. She munched happily and the demons rested in silence.

Winter came in silently. The group never ceased their travels, even long after Naraku's death; Sesshoumaru never liked to stay in one place for long and neither one of his vassels showed displeasure in that. They simply followed with smiles and laughter and riddles to keep themselves entertained (and though he would never answer aloud, Sesshoumaru himself was often puzzled by the vague descriptions Rin gave the green one to guess. But most of the time, he found his silent guesses to be correct). And Sesshoumaru found peace in the quiet lifestyle of roaming along the edges of mountains and through thick forests, completely in love with the summer breeze that faded to a subtle fall. He purchased a wool-lined kimono for his tall human companion; she was several summers older now, and had outgrown her orange and yellow clothing a while back. This one would serve her well for the season. "Thank you my lord!" She gave the grin with the tooth that had never grown back. He silently accepted the hug he couldn't feel through his armor, and threw a stone at the protesting imp.

They spent many nights in the same cave, sitting in silence with their bodies facing a roaring fire. AaUun sat curled behind their lord, heads taking turns being lightly stroked by long fingers and playfully nibbling on the long strands of white that trailed down his back. Sesshoumaru looked over to make sure the Jakken and Rin were sleeping, before letting a small smile come to his face as he planted a small kiss on each of their noses. The dragons were his oldest companions, and they spent every winter's night sitting behind Lord Sesshoumaru, letting their internal fire keep him warm. He never requested it, and never found himself needing to.

Rin snored. He smiled.

Winter came early. An adult Rin lay beneath many blankets in her room, muffling her coughs with a pillow in hopes her Lord would not hear. "Rin?" But, he always did. A cold hand fell to her forehead and she hissed at the feeling. She was boiling, certain her insides were roasting inside of her with every degree her fever rose. Her lord was a blurr of white and red, and she could hear invisible music. "It's alright Rin. The healer will be here soon." He pet the long, black hair. He tried not to show his worry, but a torn spot on his lip when he chewed on it betrayed his otherwise normal demeanor.

"I'll be waiting outside," he whispered when the old woman arrived, "I promise to be back inside to tell you Goodnight." He rose, confidant that she would feel better soon, as she always did when these winter coughs came along.

The woman came out with a grim expression. She shook her head at his blank stare, and simply walked away. Lord Sesshoumaru stood in silence, suffocating on the lump in his throat.

He slipped back in to tell the girl Goodbye.

...Winter made his heart ache. It signified the yearly visit to seeing Rin. The stone before him was covered in the white fluff, not yet packed down from last nights drift. Without expression, he stared down at the name carved in. Every year he came to see her. It never got better. The name could NOT be Rin's. Sometimes he woke up in the morning hoping to hear her laughing, telling him that he had slept too late. He never slept late anymore. He kept pressed flowers that still smelled like Rin in a blank book, something no one else would dare touch. Sometimes when it got too painful, he would open it's pages and the increasingly faded scent of Flowers and Rin would make his eyes tear up.

'It's just the dust' he would tell himself. He replaced the book and left in gust of wind, face wet and eyes bloodshot.

'It's the air' he would tell himself 'The cold air hurts my eyes.'

...Winter always seemed to leave late...


End file.
